Safety razor



Aug. 29, 1933; A; DUPEYRON 1,924,641

SAFETY RAZOR Filed April 1, 1931 1Q 11 aAnn/nHnHFdnn/FLF POE) (DUO J'HUUHHUHHUUU 4a asfe flit 1 0 7 z} 64s Artameys.

Patented Aug. 29, 1933 PATENT OFFICE SAFETY RAZOR.

Auguste Dupeyron, Paris, France Application April 1, 1931, Serial No. 526,904, and

i in France October 17, 1930 3 Claims.

My invention relates to improvements in safety razors and has to do, more particularly, with safety razors of small size the cooperating elements of which, that is the blade, blade-holder 5 and guard, are relatively narrow.

The main object of my invention is to provide a safety razorof such size that the blade-holder, blade and guard may be housed, when not in use, within the hollow handle, and to accomplish this without making the handle so large that the razor is unwieldy and difficult to use. It is an'ob-' ject of my invention, therefore, to provide a safety razor, the operatingelements of which may be housed within a hollow handle not substantially larger than the handles of safety razors now in general use. i

It is apparent that the foregoing object of my invention requires that the blade-holder, blade and guard shall be much narrower and smaller than has heretofore been the case. This introduces a very difficult problem because a mere reduction in the size of the blade-holder and guard would decrease their rigidityto a point, at which they would no longer clamp the blade so securely as to prevent vibration of the cutting edges in use.- Furthermore, the reduction in width of the blade renders it more difficult to flex the blade transversely to a sufllcient amount to cause the cutting edge portions to assume the desired cutting angle. It is a further object of my invention, therefore, to provide a safety razor, the operating elements of which may be housed within a handle of usual size, which elements, however, are so constructed, that, notwithstanding their small size, the blade will be flexed to the proper cutting angle and securely clamped and maintained, throughout its length, in such position, means being provided to stiffen the blade-holder so that it will apply the necessary clamping pressure.

In general, my invention consists in providing a safety razor comprising the usual elements of blade-holder, blade, guard and handle coacting with the blade-holder and guard to flex transversely and clamp the blade between them, and in so modifying the construction of these elements thatthey may be housed, when not in use, within a hollow handle of convenient size and, nevertheless, will flex the blade transversely to, and rigidly maintain it at, the desired cutting angle. To this end, I propose to provide a bladeholder, of a width less than the internal diameter of the hollow handle, and having a stiffening rib projectingfrom the lower or clamping surface thereof, so as to impart the necessary rigidity to the narrow 'bar constituting the blade-holder. The stiffening rib may be interrupted at intenvals to provide a series of stiffening projections. Of course, the over-all thickness of the bladeholder, including the rib, must not exceed the internal diameter of the hollow handle. I propose, further, to provide depending flanges at the ends of the blade-holder, which will assist in stiffening it and may, also, cover the ends of the blade and guard, to prevent accidental contact therewith. I propose to provide a narrow, flexible, double-edged blade, of width less than the internal diameter of the hollow handle, with a series of central openings therein arranged along the longitudinal axis. These openings have a double function. They accommodate the stiffening projections of the blade-holder and so in crease the transverse flexibility of the blade that it may be given the necessary flexure, to present the cutting edges at the proper angle, although .very narrow. I propose, further, to provide the guard with openings which receive the stiffening projections of the blade-holder, without, however, materially decreasing the rigidity of the guard. Thus, when the operating elements are So appended drawing, given merely by way of example, and in which:

Fig. 1 is an elevational front view of the safety I razor according to my invention;

Fig. 2 is a side view, partly in section, thereof Fig. 3 is an elevational front view at an enlargedscale of the blade-holder;

Fig. 4 is a plane view of the guard;

Fig. 5 is a transverse axial section of the head of the razor;

Fig. 6 is a similar view to Fig. 1 showing a different embodiment;

Fig. 7 is a transverse section of the device on the line 77 of Fig. 6, showing the razor and the extra blades in the handle;

Fig. 8 is a front elevational view at an enlarged'scaie of the blade-holder;

- Fig. 9 is a plane view thereof, seen from below;

Fig. 10 is a plane view of the'blade;

Fig. 11 is a plane view of the guard, seen from below. a

The razor comprises a guard 1 on which blade 2 is held by means of a fixation bar or bladeholder 3 provided with a threaded teat 4, which engages a screw threaded perforation provided in the upper end of handle 5. As shown in the drawing and more particularly in Fig. 2, said handle is hollow and comprises a chamber 6 adapted to receive, when the razor is not in use, the various active elements of the head of the razor, and also, eventually, extra blades. Said chamber 6 is closed by means of a stopper 9.

Blade-holder 3 comprises, on its under side, a stiffening rib interrupted at intervals to provide projections 7 which engage corresponding perforations of blade 2, and also apertures 10 provided in the guard 1. This arrangement has for its result, on the one hand to ensure with great accuracy the maintaining in suitable position of blade 2 on the blade holder and guard, and, on the other hand to ensure a suitable rigidity of blade-holder 3, for a relatively small section of said bar, this allowing said bar to apply blade 2 against the guard 1 as closely at the ends as in the middle part.

As shown more particularly in Fig. 4, guard 1 is provided on each of its longitudinal edges with teeth 8, suitably rounded and adapted to form guards. Said teeth are suitably disposed below a central rib 11 having a suitable width. As shown also in Fig. 4, fixationv bar 3 or bladeholder has a suitably curved under side, so that, when the head of the razor is fitted on the handle, bar 3 presses through its longitudinal edges 13 against blade 2 and gives to said blade a certain curvature in the transverse direction, the blade thus restingon angles 14 of guard 1, which makes it possible to give the cutting edges 15 of the blade a suitable inclination permitting to readily obtain the best cutting angle for using the razor.

The deflection of the blade in the transverse direction is made easier by the presence of perforations with which it is provided and which further ensure the maintaining in position of the bladealthough said blade is not imprisoned between organs closely applied against its two sides.

In the embodiment shown in Figs. 6 to 11, the blade-holder, shown at 16, still has the substantially triangular section as shown in Fig. 2, but it differs'therefrom in that its height is greater and its base is concave.

The inclination of the two lateral sides of the blade-holder is so calculated as to be sufficient for applying one of them against the skin in.

order to give the razor itself the required inclination for the best cutting action.

At each end of said blade-holder there is provided a depending flange 17, grooved on its outer side, and which is downwardly directed.

Said flanges are inwardly concave, in order to correspond in shape to'the rounded ends of blade 2, and they cover completely guard 18, beyond which they even project. They, also, assist in stiffening the blade holder.

As in the above described embodiment, there is still at the base of the blade-holder a stiffening rib interrupted at intervals to provide projections '7 which extend through the blade and the guard. The upper threaded end of the hollow handle 5 of the razor is screwed onto threaded teat 4 which is fixed to a projection disposed in the central part of the stiffening rib of the blade holder.

In blade 2 are provided elongated perforations 19 symmetrically disposed with respect to each other and the longer axis of which is directed along the longitudinal axis of the blade. Said perforations are in equal number to that of the projections 7 and the ends of the blades are preferably rounded.

Guard 18, the upper part of which is convex, has the usual teeth and is provided with as many apertures 20 as there are projections 7, said pro-' jections engaging perforations l9 and said apertures 20.

At the base of the guard and around the aperture 20 ,which is disposed in the central part thereof, there is provided a reinforcementv 21, whose object will be explained later on.

Inside hollow handle 5, closed at the bottom by stopper 9, is fixed a suitably curved piece 22, which limits within said handle a housing for the razor proper which consists of the blade-holder,

the blade and the guard, said parts being inserted into said housing in the respective positions which they occupy when the razor is being used.

The space remaining free between the inner walls of handle 5 and the outside of piece 22 forms a chamber for the packages shown in 23 (Fig. 7) and containing each an extra blade.

The razor thus formed has a certain number of advantages, the chief of which are the following:

The two cutting edges of the blade are kept perfectly straight whenthe razor is in position for use as, on the one hand, all the parts capable of bending so as to cause the cutting edges to be curved have been stiffened or reinforced, and, on the other hand, the very little deflection which occurs in spite of that when the handle is screwed on, due to the narrowness of the razor, is counteracted by the longitudinal bend given to the bladeholder.

For, when the blade is being fixed in position by the handle being screwed on so as to apply the blade against the guard by means of the blade- ,holder, the two last mentioned parts tend to be curved in a downward direction at their center or middle part, while their edges, on the other hand, tend to be curved in an upward direction.

In the above described razor, said deflection is a reduced to the minimum by the relatively considerable thickness of the blade-holder and'of the reinforcements that are formed by projections 1'7 and 7. The guard also is prevented from bending owing to the presence of the central reinforced part 21. However the very slight de-'- fiection that takes place in spite of that under the actionof the considerable force developed by the screwing on of the handle is multiplied by the bend or camber of the blade-holder, said bend being so calculated that itmay compensate for the very quantity by which the ends of said bladeholder are upwardly bent, so that, consequently, the two cutting edges of the blade remain perfectly straight.

, The two flanges 17 cooperate also in rendering said blade-holder more rigid, and while completely protecting the ends of said blade, the guiding of which they ensure together with projections '7, they make it possible to avoid any. risk of cutting orevenscratching oneself. Besides, the fixation and the removal of the blade-holder are'greatly facilitated due to thegrooves of flanges 17, which improve the hold of the fingers.

Another advantage resides in the fact that the working of the razor is entirely automatic, as, to obtain a perfect shaving of the hairs, it is only necessary to apply against the skin one of the lateral sides of the blade-holder, and to draw the razor while holding it always applied against the face or the part to be shaved. Moreover the rubbing of said flat and well polished part of the blade-holder on the skin, which yields under it, results in softening .the pores of said skin after the blade has effected its cutting operation, and this rubbing has, in a way, the same effect as the passing of the barbers hand upon the face of the client at the place where he has just passed the razor.

The blade is manufactured in the form of ribbons, in the known manner, and the elongated perforations that it comprises have the advantage, given the very small width of said blade, of allowing it to yield in the transverse direction when it is pressed between the blade-holder and the guard.

Certain known blades are provided with perforations which serve only to keep them in position. They must in this case be made of very thin metal in order to bend in the transverse direction, and their thinness causes them to vibrate very easily, which is detrimental to the obtaining of a good shave as soon as the bladeholder is slightly unscrewed, in order to diminish the cutting angle and thus allow one to shave closer.

Other blades are longitudinally perforated along their axis and over almost all their length. Said blades can obviously be bent with greater ease so as to be caused to take the shape of the curved blade-holder and of the guard, and consequently they can be made of a thicker material. But the two parts separated one from the other by the central opening are all the more subject to vibrations as the distance from the center to the cutting edges is greater.

In the above described blade, on the contrary, the solid parts left between the perforations render the whole homogeneous, and make transverse deflection possible. Said transverse deflection could be only imperfectly produced if the blade were axially slit along the greater part of its length, as the two remaining bands, owing to their narrowness, would no longer have the required flexibility.

Said solid parts have the further advantage of maintaining a certain rigidity of the blade, so that, even when it is untightened to diminish the cutting angle so as to allow one to shave closer, no vibration occurs, the total width of the blade being still smaller than that of the two halves of a larger blade perforated in its middle part.

It will thus be seen that the advantages already described concerning the first embodiment of my invention, and which consist chiefly in the fact that the razor occupies but little space, either when in use or when not in use, are completed by all the advantages that go to make an instrument whose working is perfect, and which eliminate any possible risk for the user, even when the razor is clumsily handled.

The problem to be solved was all the more difficult as the apparatus had to be very small in size and it was necessary to so calculate the shape, the section and the size of the pieces that each one of them should be perfectly adapted. to the function it had to perform, while remaining within the scope of said problem, that is making a razor as small and reduced in size as possible.

While I have in the above description endeavored to describe what I believe to be practical and efficient embodiments of my invention, it should be well understood that I do not wish to be limited thereto, as there might be changes made in the arrangement, disposition and shape of the parts without departing from the spirit of my invention as comprehended withinthe scope of the appended claims.

WhatI claim is:

1. In a safety razor of the type in which the handle thereof "constitutes a storage container for the blade and blade-mounting parts when detached therefrom, a tubular handle of normal size and length adapted for detachable association with the blade-mounting parts and having one end provided with a detachable closure; a blade, blade guard and blade-clamping cap each of which elements is of normal length but of less width than the internal diameter of said handle, said blade-clamping cap being provided with integral stiffening means comprising a series of closely spaced alined projections constituting a central, substantially co-extensive, interrupted longitudinal rib projecting from the blade-engaging face, said guard being provided with a series of openings complementary to and accommodating the projections of said cap, and said blade being reticulated with a series of closely spaced slots complementary to and accommodating the projections of said cap and providing transverse flexibility in said blade; said blade, guard and cap, when assembled, having such overall dimensions as to be receivable within said tubular handle of normal size and length.

2. In a safety razor of the type in which the handle thereof constitutes a storage container for the blade and blade-mounting parts when detached therefrom, a tubular handle of normal size and length adapted for detachable association with the blade-mounting parts and having one end provided with a detachable closure; a blade, blade guard and blade-clamping cap, each of which elements is of normal length but of less width than the internal diameter of said-handle, said blade-clamping cap being of triangular cross-section, having a depending transverse flange at each end, and being provided with integral stiffening means comprising a series of closely spaced alined projections constituting a central, substantially co-extensive, interrupted longitudinal rib projecting from its blade-engaging face, said guard being receivable between the depending end flanges of said cap and being provided with a series of openings complementary to and accommodating the projections of said cap, and said blade being receivable between said flanged cap and guard and being reticulated with a series of closely spaced slots complementary to and accommodating the projections of said cap and providing transverse flexibility in said blade; said blade, guard and cap, when assembled, having such overall dimensions as to be receivable within said tubular handle of normal size and length.

3. In asafety razor of the type in which the handle thereof constitutes a-storage container for the blade and blade-mounting parts when detached therefrom, a tubular handle of normal size and length adapted for detachable association with the blade-mounting parts and having one end provided with a detachable closure; a blade, blade guard and blade-clamping cap, each of which elements is of normal length but of less width than the internal diameter ofsaid handle, said blade clamping cap being slightly arched longitudinally and being provided with integral stiffening means comprising a series of closely spaced alined projections constituting a central, substantially co-extensive, interrupted rib pro- 'jecting from the blade-engaging face, said blade guard having a longitudinally straight blade-engaging face and having a series of openings complementary to and accommodating the, projections of said cap, and said blade being receivable between said cap and guard and being reticulated with a series of closely spaced slots comple- 

